Kerr effect of low melting nematic liquid crystals with negative dielectric anisotropy

Abstract

The two low melting nematic liquid crystals, 2‐chloro‐4‐heptylphenyl 4‐pentylbicyclo[2,2,2]octane‐1‐carboxylate (7CP5BOC) and 2‐chloro‐4‐heptylphenyl 4‐heptylbicyclo[2,2,2]octane‐1‐carboxylate (7CP7BOC) have been investigated to determine their electro‐optical behaviour and third order non‐linearity by the static Kerr effect method. Both liquid crystals are laterally substituted by a single chlorine atom located close to the ester linking group. The temperature dependence of the electric Kerr constant in the isotropic phase and the pretransitional behaviour have been investigated for these low birefringence nematic liquid crystals in the isotropic phase. Both the compounds, with negative dielectric anisotropy, have a positive Kerr constant. The Landau–de Gennes model was obeyed for these compounds.